WHEN I BEGAN WRITING MY FIRST COOKBOOK IN 1997, as a chef who never wrote as much as a letter but wanted to pen his own words, I had a lot to learn, beginning with how to type. This time around I had a head start, and this book was truly a joy to create. I enjoyed every minute of the time I spent on it, in large part because of the many people who helped and supported me. I send a genuine thanks to all of them.
John Granen arrived at my house every other week during the summer to photograph the food in my garden or kitchen as I styled it. With his skill, patience, and keen eye, he delivered stunning results and I thank him for the rewarding collaboration.
Judith Riven, my superagent, enabled me to produce the kind of book I dreamed about and I deeply thank her for her attention throughout the whole process, from proposal to press.
At Morrow, a huge thank-you to Harriet Bell, my editor, for her confidence in the project, for being such a pleasure to work with, and for making this a gorgeous book, and thanks to Lucy Baker, Carrie Bachman, Diane Aronson, Ann Cahn, Leah Carlson-Stanisic, and Vertigo Design.
At The Herbfarm, thanks to its owners, Ron Zimmerman and Carrie Van Dyck, for the opportunities they’ve given me over the fourteen years we’ve worked together, and for their dedication to creating an extraordinary dining experience for every one of our guests. Toby Kim was a great help with assisting during the photo shoots, and thanks to him and the rest of my kitchen staff, including John Payne, Joe Ritchie, Dan Gilmore, Jeanette Smith, Becky Selengut (for the soup idea), Savuthy Dy, Steve Hansen, and Candido Hernandez-Reyes, for their hard work every day. Thanks for the support of the Herbfarm office staff and the dining room staff, with a special thanks to our Wine Goddess (sommelier), Christine Mayo. And finally a big applause for EagleSong, our head gardener, for her remarkable understanding of plants and the soil, and thanks to her, Julie Wuestehoff, and Robert Mills for the splendid herbs and vegetables they grow.
Thanks to Sur La Table for their generosity and to Bob Kramer at Bladesmith for his knives that are works of art.
I’m grateful to all those who gave me feedback on the recipes after trying them in their own home kitchens. Thanks to Heidi Gregory, Sally Toffic, Katie Thacher, Anna Hurwitz, Nancy Scharf, and Sara Bowen.
And thanks most of all to Stevie, who helps and supports me in so many ways, who keeps me laughing, and whose opinion I always trust.